Palpita persimilis Munroe (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) is a defoliator of olives and privet in
South America (Gomez 1999; Chiaradia and Da Croce 2008). Examination of specimens submitted to UF-IFAS and
FDACS-DPI prompted the discovery that the species has been established in Florida for many years, having been
confused with two similar native species. The confusion parallels historical misidentifications in Peru (Gomez
1999). To date, all vouchered specimens in Florida with host information were found feeding on leaves of Ligustrumjaponicum Thunb. (Japanese privet).

Palpita Hübner includes several dozen tropical and temperate species globally, most of which feed on Oleaceae if
the host is known. Palpitavitrealis (Rossi), better known by the synonym Palpita unionalis (Hübner), is a major pest of
olive and jasmine in Europe and Asia (Yilmaz and Genç 2012). Palpitanigropunctalis (Bremer) in East Asia feeds
on several oleaceous species, including ligustrum and lilac (Gotoh et al. 2011). The larvae commonly construct
untidy webs of leaves and silk in which they consume the leaves and, in some species, also the fruit.

The initial detection in Florida was an infestation of ornamental privet trees in Sumter County in July 2012. The
homeowner indicated that other infestations were unreported in the area. More specimens were subsequently found
in the Florida State Collection of Arthropods (FSCA), the earliest of which were raised on privet in January 1980 at
the Fort Lauderdale IFAS Agricultural Research Center. Vouchered adults from 1992 (Valrico, FL) and 1999 (St.
Cloud, FL) were raised from larvae feeding on privet in nurseries. Several lots of Palpita larvae that may represent
the same species have been collected on privet since the early 1980s.

The distribution includes southern Brazil, Bolivia (Sara Department), Peru, Costa Rica, northern
Venezuela, Guadeloupe, Saint Kitts, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Cuba (Munroe 1959; Alayo and Valdes
Arteaga 1974; Gomez 1999; FSCA and MGCL specimens). Florida counties represented by vouchered adult
specimens include Broward, Collier, Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Osceola and Sumter. The southern and
central counties represent two centers of distribution. Geographically, the nearest population is in Cuba, where it was
recorded on olive and privet (Alayo and Valdes Arteaga 1974). In addition, many lots of larval specimens of Palpitasp. were collected on privet in southeastern Florida counties in the early 1980s. Identification as Palpita persimilis cannot
be confirmed without an adult specimen, but the sudden increase of infestations makes the identity plausible.

The wingspan of observed specimens varies from 19 to 27 mm (Fig. 1). The almost entirely white
wings are practically indistinguishable from those of two other Palpita species in Florida, Palpita kimballi Munroe and Palpitaquadristigmalis (Guenée). However, the body size and aspects of coloration are useful for distinguishing Palpitapersimilis. The labial palpi (Fig. 3A) are mostly reddish brown with distinct dark-brown to black scales bordering
the reddish area dorsally and ventrally; the same dark scales are also prominent on the maxillary palpi and lateral
margin of the frons. The foreleg tibia (Fig. 3A) has distinctly black scales proximally and distally that contrast with
the orange-brown femur. Palpitakimballi is the same size but lacks the black scales; the palpi are nearly uniformly
reddish brown, with at most a few darker scales, and the foreleg tibia is orange-brown like the femur (Fig. 3B).
Conversely, Palpitaquadristigmalis has similar dark scales on the palpi and forelegs, although more brown or gray
and not quite as distinct, but the average size is larger (26-30 mm in FSCA specimens). The forewings also have a
slightly yellowish tinge, although assessment requires direct comparison of the different species under good,
consistent lighting. However, specimens of Palpitapersimilis from the earliest interception (Broward Co.) are large and
slightly yellow, like Palpitaquadristigmalis, so definite identification requires genitalic dissection.

Two other species of related moths with white wings occur in the subtropical Nearctic. Palpitaflegia (Cramer) is
common in Florida, with a much larger wingspan (3.5-5.0 cm) and a blue-gray forewing costa and white palpi.
Palpitaflegia is a conspicuous pest of yellow oleander (Thevetiaperuviana (Pers.) K. Schum.). Diaphaniacostata (Fabricius) occurs in Texas, Oklahoma and the Caribbean, so it could occur in Florida as a rare stray. It averages 30
mm in wingspan, and it has an orange-brown forewing costa and orange palpi without black scales. Males have a
tuft of hairs in a pocket underneath the forewing costa. Larvae of both species feed on Apocynaceae rather than
Oleaceae and have the male antenna modified at the base with a mesally swollen scape and pedicel and a sinus onthe flagellum. The classification of both species is provisional, and they may be more closely related to Old World
genera such as Stemorrhages Lederer.

Four more species of true Palpita are known in Florida: the widespread Palpita magniferalis (Walker), Palpita illibalis (Hübner), Palpita freemanalis Munroe in the Florida Panhandle, and Palpita maritima Sullivan and Solis (Sullivan and Solis 2013). There is little chance of confusing them, because the wings are mottled brown, gray and white, and the
genitalia have symmetrical valve processes (Munroe 1952).

Male genitalia: Palpitapersimilis has elongate processes on the valvae that curve around to parallel the distal
margin of the valva (Fig. 4). Each process has two parts. The inner parts are symmetrical and have swollen, grooved
apices. The outer parts are narrow and asymmetrical, with the right-hand one nearly as long as its inner part and
slightly bifurcate, and the left-hand one half as long as its inner counterpart. Palpitaquadristigmalis and Palpitakimballi have much shorter, crescent-shaped processes that are closer to the base of the valva and do not come close to
paralleling the distal margin; they are symmetrical in the former species and asymmetrical in the latter.

Female genitalia: In Palpitapersimilis (Fig. 5A), the lamella postvaginalis is slightly asymmetrical with respect to a
spout-like mediodistal depression. The lamella is flat, rounded and symmetrical in the other white species in Florida
(Fig. 5B, C).

Eggs: Females lay up to 200 eggs singly on the underside of leaves. The eggs are greenish yellow and 0.5 mm in
diameter (Chiaradia and Da Croce 2008).

Larva: Characters used to diagnose larvae of Palpita persimilis from other Palpita species are not yet known. Live larvae
are green with a pale yellow head and grow to a length of about 2 cm (4/5 in.) (Fig. 6). Young larvae (Fig. 11) are
similar to older stages. The prothoracic shield may be mottled to nearly colorless. The dorsal pinacula and the
ventral margin of the subdorsal pinacula may or may not be pigmented dark brown; most other pinacula are not
pigmented. When the pinacula are not otherwise colored, a distinct brown spot is obvious on the subdorsal
pinaculum of the second thoracic segment (Fig. 7A). This last character also occurs in other Palpita species that feed
on Oleaceae (Allyson 1984) as well as a few other crambid moths, such as the Bougainvillea caterpillar (Asciodesgordialis [Guenée]) and some specimens of the Mulberry leaftier (Glyphodessibillalis Walker). The spot is obscured
when other pinacula are colored (Fig. 7B).

2(1'). Wing without spots, or with at most one spot on discal cell; male with base of antennal flagellum hollowed and
scale-covered; tuft of hair in ventral pocket along male forewing costa; male valva with one small downturned
clasper; female with ostium bursae unmodified and corpus bursae without signa (sclerites); larva on Apocynaceae
. . . . . . Diaphania costata (possible stray from Caribbean)

2'. Forewing with one small black spot on central cell, two or three spots along costa, and two or three at margin of
wing apex (Fig. 1-2); male antenna and base of wing never modified or tufted; male valva with two or three
upturned claspers (Fig. 4); female with ostial plate (lamella postvaginalis, Fig. 5A-C), and corpus bursae with pair
of large, horn-shaped signa (sclerites, Fig. 5A); larva on Oleaceae
. . . . . . Palpita spp. 3

Wille (1952) and Chiaradia and Da Croce (2008) describe larval behavior in South America. The
number of days until egg hatch depends on temperature, ranging from 8 to 15 days. Early instar larvae consume
buds and tender leaves, and later instars may eat older, harder leaves. They roll leaves into nests, stripping the
surface or skeletonizing, and the buds and leaves dry up. They eat the olive fruits only rarely, and damage to flowers
is not reported. The larval stage lasts 30 to 45 days. Pupation usually occurs in crevices in the bark and lasts 10 to 20
days. Total generation time is 50 days in spring to 65-80 days in winter. There may be five or six generations per
year. Adults are active by day as well as night, but they are reclusive and hide under leaves of the host. Elevated
temperatures (especially warm winters) and high precipitation and humidity favor population growth (Wille 1952;
Chiaradia and Da Croce 2008).
Observations of the species in Florida agree with the above. Larvae of all stages prefer young leaves and new
growth, but not flowers. They feed primarily on the epidermis (Fig. 8), but older larvae can eat holes in larger
leaves. They construct shapeless, frass-laden nests of leaves tied together with silk (Fig. 9). Damage can result in the
curling of older leaves. In the primary observation in Sumter County, foliage was trimmed at the end of July to
remove nests and eggs, but within five weeks, new flushes of leaves were supporting another large population (Fig.
10).

Control measures are difficult because of the habit of concealed feeding. Several natural enemies have
been tested with varying success (Chiaradia and Da Croce 2008). Trimming foliage to remove eggs and nests, if
applied, should be done thoroughly, because any surviving larvae will prefer to consume the resulting new growth..

Authors: James E. Hayden, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Plant Industry, and Lyle J. Buss, University of Florida.
Originally published as DPI Entomology Circular 426
Photographs: James E. Hayden, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Plant Industry, and Lyle J. Buss, University of Florida.